The new solo album from Taz Modi, Involuntary Memories, is out tomorrow May 16th through Sehnsucht. Best known as a founder member of Submotion Orchestra, as well as Matthew Halsall’s pianist for many years and keyboardist for Portico Quartet, Modi has also worked with the likes of DJ Shadow and Mr. Scruff. Marking his second solo outing, following 2019’s Reclaimed Goods, the upcoming Involuntary Memories is a personal and reflective collection of piano-based compositions, shaped by spontaneous recollections and their emotional impact. Recorded across various locations on different pianos, the album was written during a period marked by meaningful life changes like the ageing of his parents, the lockdown, and the birth of his child. “As I reached my forties, I started wondering why these involuntary memories were increasing in frequency, and events around me seemed to trigger more and more recollections of my past,” Modi explains. “I was writing this album around the same time and all of the tracks are inspired by these spontaneous recollections and the range of emotions they seemed to provoke in me.”

Involuntary Memories opens with ‘Involuntary Memories Pt. 1 & 2’ and Modi has recently shared Pt.2. Speaking about it, he says:

“When I came across the pattern that starts this tune off, there was something in the way these two major chords next to each other created a sadness and melancholy that seemed to encapsulate something in how nostalgia works—happiness and sadness coexisting side by side, something that should be joyous actually being sad, and vice versa.”

‘Involuntary Memories (Pt. 2)’ is paired with a live performance video. Watch it below and listen to ‘Involuntary Memories (Pt. 1)’ straight after.